For hundreds of years, visitors to Brazil have witnessed the graceful and violent beauty of capoeira. Now the 500-year-old dance-infused fighting style from Bahia–Brazil's Afrocentric heartland–has become a fitness trend around the world.

Originally developed by slaves, "capoeira' has a unique fluidity that makes it seem more like dance. That is intentional: Knowing their masters would never tolerate self-defense, the slaves camouflaged their movements as innocuous horseplay.

"Capoeira is beautiful and deadly, " says Masumeh, "It's an effective self-protection because you learn to read others, as well as develop killer ways to kick them." Like jazz, this martial art thrives on improvisation too

Capoeira is performed in a roda, a circle formed by fellow capoeiristas, one of whom plays an instrument called the berimbau, which dictates the tempo. When it's played slowly, capoeira resembles the tai chi. When set at a quick pace, the movements explode in spectacular flying and upside-down kicks, handstands, cartwheels, rolls, and ankle

sweeps that would leave Akshay Kumar flummoxed.As an exercise, capoeira will push your cardio to the max while stressing balance, flexibility, and strength. A typical class is one to two hours long, and you hardly ever stop moving during that time.

Almost every muscle of the body is used with a maximum flexibility, focusing mainly on your core. "It's dangerous, sensual, and sexy, " says Masumeh, "in a way a strip-mall karate can never be."